Giorgia Meloni‘s far-right government has launched a programme to send asylum seekers to detention centres in Albania. This idea has garnered support from several conservative governments across the EU. A first group of 16 migrants—10 from Bangladesh and six from Egypt—has already been sent to the two centres, generating enthusiasm from both the Italian government and European far-right groups.
However, the “Meloni model,” which the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described as an example of “out-of-the-box thinking” to address illegal migration into the EU, has faced significant challenges. Recently, an Italian court ruled against the government’s plan to detain 12 migrants at these Albanian centres, revealing a substantial obstacle in the administration’s strategy to outsource some of its migrant processing to the Balkan country. Despite the fanfare organised by the Italian government, all 16 asylum seekers must now return to Italy.
According to an agreement between the Italian and Albanian governments, the two countries have opened two centres in Albania to accommodate up to 3,000 migrants per month. These migrants will be evaluated for potential asylum in Italy or sent back to their home countries. This initiative will cost Italy 670 million euros.
According to Italian law, special migration courts must review each migrant’s detention in Italy. Thus, a court in Rome rejected the detention of 12 migrants, stating that they could not be sent back to their countries of origin—Bangladesh and Egypt—because these countries were deemed unsafe. Additionally, the centre staff identified four other vulnerable migrants after undergoing health and other screenings.
This ruling highlights the flaws in the much-publicised “Meloni model,” which fails to account for sensitive issues, such as the safety of asylum seekers, making it practically unworkable. Furthermore, the Meloni government has disrespected the Italian judiciary, as the Prime Minister criticised the judges following the ruling. Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi announced that the government would appeal the court’s decision. Meloni said that only the government, not magistrates, should determine which countries are safe. She will hold a Cabinet meeting on Monday to explore ways to address this issue.
Regarding safety in Bangladesh and Egypt, the Rome judges based their decision on recent international rulings that recognise discrimination or persecution in any part of a country as valid grounds for determining safety. In response, the centre-left opposition emphasised that the current system is expensive, complicated, and detrimental to migrants’ rights.
